Before I begin, let me just say that words in *no* way do this man
justice. He is a truly unique individual. These are two specific instances
where I interacted with Adrian, both times with my son, Nick, who was 5 at
the time.

The Autograph Line ~ Morning Session ~
Saturday.

Nick had "patiently" waited his turn to meet everyone. When
we got to Adrian, Nick was greeted by AP (who focused on Nick the entire
time, which I thought was really cool) with "Hey there, little man.
How are you?" Nick, never bashful, said hi and asked Adrian if they
could go and have a pretend sword fight, stating that he had brought his
swords (toy models <g>)

Adrian smiled and said that he would really
*love* to do that, but (and for this, he leaned over the table and spoke
rather conspiratorially to Nick, jerking his head to indicate the folks
behind him) "THEY won't let me." ***Big Pout from Adrian***
***Bigger THUD from Mommy*** Adrian verified with Nick that he did,
indeed, watch the show and seemed a bit surprised. I said that I felt that
Nick could do a whole lot worse for role models than Duncan MacLeod, and
that I felt that a lot of the special depth of the character was a direct
result of the conviction and passion that Adrian himself brought to the
role. Talk about a grin!! He thanked me with a simple, "I'm
honored" and then said that those words, coming from a Mom, meant a
lot to him. We moved on at that time, but let me just say that what you
have heard is true. When in the presence of Adrian Paul, when those eyes
are locked on you, it's as if no one else in the world exists for that
moment in time. YOU are his sole focus, regardless of what is going on
around you. He has an ability to make you feel like the guest of honor,
instead of the other way around.

Autograph Line (again) ~ Saturday afternoon
(about 4:30pm)

While Nick was waiting to see everyone again, some of the kind fans in
line offered him a paper bag and a pen to draw with. I honestly had no
idea what he was making. When I called him to go to the table, and tried
to take the bag from him, he said that it was a present for Adrian! Ok. AP
again greeted Nick, and then said that he remembered him from earlier that
morning. Nick gave him the bag, which had an elaborate drawing on one side
and his name written completely out (that's 23 letters, folks) on the
other side.

The conversation:

AP
~ "Hey, what's this a picture of?"

NL
~ "It's a map!"

AP
~ "Where's it go to?"

NL~
"MY house, so you can come visit!!" **BIG smile from Adrian** AP
~ "Man, that's really nice of you. Thank you! Now I know how to find
you." Then he turned the bag over and looked at the name. AP~
"What's this"

NL
~"My name, all written out. I got some help with the spelling."
AP~ (laughing) "I guess SO! Did you write this all by yourself?"
NL~ "Yeah!"

AP~"That's
a *LOT* of letters! Wow, man... you must be really smart."

NL~
"Look in the bag, there's a present for you." (Mommy shudders,
WHAT? And told Adrian that this was news to me)

AP
peeked in the bag, reached in and pulled out a half-empty package of Lance
cheese crackers.

NL~"Those
are for you. I thought you might be hungry." Folks, I wish I could
describe the play of emotions on Adrian's face at that moment. It was like
a wall had come town, and he was touched beyond words. There was no
mistaking the genuineness of what he said next, and I swear that I even
saw a sheen of tears in his eyes. AP~"That's so sweet of you, Nick. I
really appreciate it. You're a very thoughtful little boy."

Then
he looked at me and said "You should be very proud"

A-yup!
And this was on Mother's Day Weekend, too! I could never have asked for a
better present than the one that Adrian gave us both that day.... his
warmth, his smile and his kindness.